Contents

Understand

Throughout the 1800s, this area consisted mostly of a few farms and some apple orchards. Costa Mesa was officially incorporated in 1920; its name meaning "coast tableland" in Spanish. During World War II, Costa Mesa was the site of the Santa Ana Army Air Base, a military installation that existed from 1942 to 1946. Today, Costa Mesa has expanded into a robust community that features a legitimate focus on performing arts and entertainment. Costa Mesa provides a city-like feel in a suburban setting with a vast amount of storefront shops and residential areas. The west side of the city features industrial properties that specialize in manufacturing while the northern part of the city features commercial properties that specialize in business. Costa Mesa is served by the Newport-Mesa Unified School District and is also home to Orange Coast Community College.

Get in

Driving: Home to one Interstate 405 and California highways 55 and 73; driving into the city is not hard. Harbor Boulevard and Bristol Street is an important North-South road in the city while 17th Street and 19th Street are important East-West roads in the city.

Flying: One can also fly in as John Wayne Airport (SNA) is just on the other side of the Costa Mesa/Santa Ana border. From there you can either rent a vehicle, obtain a taxi, or use the bus system to get around.

Get around

OCTA operates a myriad of buses in the city. The most important ones are those that serve South Coast Plaza. Routes 51, 55, 57, 76, 86, 145, 172, 173, 211, 216 and 464 all serve the mall, which basically means that SCP is accessible almost anywhere in the county.

Cab Service: Cab companies are plentiful in O.C.

1-800-4-MY-TAXI A taxi service that explicitly serves Orange County

See

Costa Mesa offers quality variety of shopping, fine dining, and entertainment options. Costa Mesa also features plenty of golf courses and parks in addition to being mere minutes away from the Pacific Ocean for people who want to spend time outdoors.

Do

Orange County Fairgrounds, 88 Fair Drive Costa Mesa, CA 92626, [2]. The Orange County Fair is in full effect from mid-July to mid-August, featuring a wide variety of rides, food, games, and live events; with most of the latter being held at the 8,500-capacity Pacific Amphitheater and has featured performers such as ZZ Top, B.B. King, Weird Al Yankovic, Leann Rimes, and Fergie (from The Black Eyed Peas). When the fair isn't in effect, the fairgrounds are open year-round for a wide variety of trade shows, expos, and other events.

Orange County Performing Arts Center, 600 Town Center Drive Costa Mesa, CA 92626, [3]. The Orange County Performing Arts Center features several auditoriums the range in capacity from 250 to 3,000 people to host a variety of plays, ballets, and symphonic performances.

The Detroit Bar, 843 West 19th Street, ☎949-642-0600, [4]. A 300-capacity music venue has found itself to be home to a wide variety of acts that have come through town (hip-hop artist GZA from the Wu-Tang Clan has performed here, as have grunge metal pioneers The Melvins in addition to local house DJs on Fridays and karaoke singers on Sundays.) Mondays always feature free cover and showcase the local band of the month all month long.

Buy

South Coast Plaza, 3333 Bristol St Costa Mesa, CA 92626, [5]. . An enormous shopping plaza that is so large that it has its has two campuses across directly across from each other. Shops include the high-end boutiques that are also found on Beverly Hills' Rodeo Drive as well as chain stores such as Gap and Abercrombie & Fitch. It is accessible from the 405 and 5 freeways. Directly across from the mall is the Metro Pointe at South Coast which is an open-air retail, entertainment, and commercial center.

The Lab/The Camp, 2930 Bristol Street Costa Mesa, CA 92627, [6]. . On the other side of the 405 is the outdoor "anti-mall" the Lab, featuring hip nationwide chains such as Urban Outfitters and Buffalo Exchange, but has also contains 2 fabulous restaurants, the vegan-friendly Gyspy Cafe, a great hair salon and more than enough independent boutiques (Carve, Blends, Treasury Dept, etc) Across Bristol St. is the also outdoor Camp, which is newer and more gastronomically-centered. Highlights include the Seed People's Market, Active, tattoo parlor Outer Limits and the restaurants Ecco Italian Cuisine, Native Foods and Valhalla Table. Both have incredible architecture and plenty of places to lounge, including a hammock!! Though unaffiliated with the mall, an American Apparel store is located a few blocks away.

Eat

TerraNova Dining Room at the Wyndham Orange County. provides casual, upscale dining while overlooking a picturesque lake and outdoor clubhouse seating for those who prefer the fresh air. Breakfast lovers can begin their day with the new "Fields and Sun Breakfast" buffet offering the freshest fruits and produce, muffins and croissants baked daily, cooked to order omelets and much more. The lunchtime all-you-can-eat "Pasta Bar" at our Costa Mesa California hotel offers five different types of pasta accompanied by over 25 fresh ingredients and sauces. With all cuisines represented, the brasserie-style lunch and dinner menu consists of old and new favorites including signature char-grilled meats, fresh seafood and seasonal specialties. The menu is complemented by a superb wine list with over 20 California and regional selections -making them a leader in hotel dining in Costa Mesa.

Doria's Haus of Pizza, 1500 Adams Ave, ☎714-751-8777. This family-run hole-in-the-wall is a great place for inexpensive Italian food. Their pizza's are huge and cheesy, a knife-and-fork kinda pie. Their antipasto salad is very tasty, and the house dressing is full of fresh garlic for some great sopping! Hands-down best pizza in Costa Mesa (some claim best in Orange County..others claim best in Southern California). The manicotti is 'old school'--very cheesy. As a bonus, people-watch the obligatorily black-clad Paul Mitchell School students going to-and-from class, and pop into the retro second-hand clothing joint nextdoor.

Taqueria El Granjenal, 899 West 19th Street, ☎949-645-4964. Located on the city's west side, this Mexican eatery is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They feature some authentic Mexican favorites such as mojarra and menudo (weekends only) but also cater to more American tastes with some of the best hamburgers, burritos, and tortas around. Try their fresh juices or their Kim's Tacos: Pork or beef tacos where the meat is spicy and Korean flavored.

Taco Mesa, 647 W. 19th St, ☎949-642-0629. A wonderfully inexpensive gourmet Mexican place. Serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner, their food is made fresh on the premises. Try to hit between peak hours as this place is very popular.

Hotties Pizza, 440 Fair Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92627, ☎949.650.6205. Hottie's Pizza is locally owned and operated. Originally located on Old Newport Road, in Newport Beach, we were know as the “hautest pizza in Newport” and have now opened in Costa Mesa to serve Newport and East and Westside Costa Mesa.

Drink

Goat Hill Tavern, 1830 Newport Blvd, ☎+1-949-548-8428. Very fun, gritty bar complete with a peanut shell-covered floor. They have well over 100 different beers on tap with the advertised number being 141. The crowd is varied in age and social status and is generally one of the better places to hang out in Central Orange County.

Tin Lizze Saloon, 752 Saint Clair Costa Mesa, CA 92626, [8]. One of Orange Counties few remaining bars for gays, lesbians, and straights alike. Located between the 405 and 5 freeways it is easily accessible and is the perfect drink stop after a day of shopping or working at South Coast Plaza.

Sutra, 1870 Harbor Blvd, Costa Mesa, CA 92627, [9]. One of the few establishments remaining in the Triangle Square Plaza, Sutra focuses on providing an L.A.-type of environment with high energy and high fashion. Sutra regularly has house music to dance to but established hip hop and electronic music artists are known to throw parties there. With all that attention comes higher prices, but if you can rub elbows with your favorite rapper up there, it might be worth it.

Avalon Bar, 820 W 19th St Costa Mesa, CA 92627. A small dive bar located on the city's west-side directly across the way from The Detroit Bar, Avalon offers a dive bar type of environment with a noir-art decor. There are always drink specials and the weekends usually feature live dance music. The crowds are usually modest; which makes it an ideal spot to grab a drink and socialize.

Hi-Time Wine Cellar, 250 Ogle Street Costa Mesa, CA 92627, [10]. Though not a bar, Hi-Time has the broadest selection of beer, wine, and spirits available. The store features a wine bar, a cooled wine cellar and a cooled walk-in beer refrigerator with exotic beverages from around the world. Hi-Time also features cigars and bulk-food items.

Shark Club, 841 Baker Street Costa Mesa, CA 92626, [11]. The Shark Club is the type of place people go to be seen. In addition to their two dance floors and 2000 gallon shark tank, they've also got an open kitchen too. With VIP treatment and bottle service available, The Shark Club is fashionably expensive and high-energy.

Stay safe

Costa Mesa can be one of the safest cities to visit but it also has it's share of crime. Regions near Santa Ana can have criminal incidents spill over into the city as a result of gangs and narcotics. The city's Westside is lower-income and highly-industrial; making it a somewhat popular destination for homeless people and panhandlers. The local police department does patrols on a routine basis, however, so criminal incidents are limited at best.

Get out

You can leave the city either through the John Wayne Airport or by taking the local freeways out of the city. CA-73 and I-405 will lead to Los Angeles if you head north or to San Diego if you head south. Considering that the CA-55 South terminates at Costa Mesa's 19th Street, CA-55 North will lead to northern Orange County and will conenct to CA-91, which leads to Riverside, California

This is a usable article. It has information for getting in as well as some complete entries for restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please plunge forward and help it grow!